Kyrgyzstan aims to protect 30 percent of its territory by 2035

The Ministry of Natural Resources, Ecology, and Technical Supervision in Kyrgyzstan released a draft strategy to expand the country's protected natural areas between 2026 and 2035.

The ministry plans to bring more high-altitude glaciers, rocky mountain regions, and state forest lands under official protection. Currently, protected areas cover about 2.36 million hectares of the country. The ministry proposes increasing the amount of protected land from 11.8 percent to 20 percent by 2030 and 30 percent by 2035.

The document contains a conflicting section that suggests reaching the 30 percent goal by 2030, which makes the exact timeline unclear. The plan allows local residents to continue traditional livestock grazing in buffer zones and ensures that productive pastures remain available for agricultural use. The strategy includes upgrading infrastructure and introducing digital monitoring systems to protect wildlife like snow leopards and Tien Shan brown bears.

While private investors can build tourism facilities in specific zones, the draft prohibits the transfer of protected land to private owners and the construction of permanent buildings. To manage environmental risks from high visitor numbers, the ministry plans to limit the number of people on popular routes in parks like Ala-Archa and Karakol. The ministry says it will fund these plans using existing government budgets, visitor fees, and international grants.